Like Mother, Like Daughter...

DURBAN-BORN Christy du Preez, the youngest real estate agent at the all-women, Westville-based, A-Team branch of the Dormehl Phalane Group (DPG), is a bubbly achiever with a sass and spark that has led to ongoing success.

It's not for nothing that this daughter of DPG A-Team manager and fellow sales agent, Lindi Honey, was applauded as the property group's fourth most successful KwaZulu-Natal sales agent at last year's awards ceremony. A cherry on top was that she also placed fifth countrywide, while the branch itself scooped a total of 13 awards.

Describing herself as "tenacious, hard-working, great at time-management and never one to give up", Christy first delved into the world of property as a rental agent in 2013. She has been a sales agent since 2015, now fully qualified and serving Westville, Cowies Hill and Sherwood areas.

However, before she became a valuable asset to the successful A-Team branch in Westville , where DPG founder Owen Dormehl is the principal, Christy had tried her hand at many different things. She started promotions work during her high school years at St Mary's in Kloof, did waitressing in 2010 and became a lifeguard in 2012. She also become a chef, earning a diploma in professional cookery.

"A friend and I wanted to travel, so we applied for a job in one of the most beautiful waterparks in the world - Atlantis, The Palm... in Dubai. I worked there for a while but it was so hot, I kept passing out. I absolutely loved the country, but decided I needed a job that had air-conditioning," she recalls.

Christy then joined the food industry as a manager, alongside her friend, but returned to South Africa when her father became ill: "I realised family was important, so I stayed!"

She joined MaxProp Westville, which her grandfather, the late Adrian Ortlepp, started in 1958: "I was a rental agent there, but sales seemed more exciting so I decided to become an agent. I think it's always been in the blood. The rest is history!"

Christy loves being a member of the A-Team which launched three years ago. Due to the rapid expansion of Dormehl Phalane in Westville, the fast-growing group created two, separate offices in the area that are independently owned and operated. The DPG Elite team is based in Salisbury Avenue, with Dormehl Phalane A-Team in Blair Atholl Road.

The A-Team's sales agents are Lindi and Christy, Lindi's sister Sue Foster and Anne Heyes. Marketing and canvassing are handled by Kim Hayes, Lindi's mother Nola Ortlepp assists with canvassing, and admin is in the very capable hands of Chene Theunissen.

Like her mother, Christy has a penchant for, and admirable success with, property that results in impressive sales figures.

She is delighted with her achievements, but is quick to add: "For me, it's not about the money... that's an afterthought. I love helping my buyers achieve their goals, getting the house or property they want, and seeing their smiles when they find the right thing.

"I also love assisting people in achieving the sale of their homes in the quickest time and for the highest price. To see their appreciation and happiness once I've sold their property is priceless."

She says she has always admired the DPG brand, its good reputation and the positivity associated with it: "The company is always educating staff, remains hands-on and always has time for its agents. We are moving with the times and have some exciting new ideas coming. Watch this space!"

When she is not working, Christy enjoys playing tennis and being involved with a group called Safety Net, which operates in the Westville, Sherwood and Cowies Hill areas.

"We volunteer to counsel people through trauma. It's definitely been tough to hear other people's stories, but helping them is the best reward. I am definitely going to carry on with this special group. I would also like to get involved with Westville Rotary."

Christy is also a huge animal lover -"rescuing them on a daily basis is my passion" - and enjoys being outdoors and at the gym.

What does she believe makes a good agent?

"To always be available. I have learned this the hard way. If a client wants to view a property, do everything in your power to take them out to view, because if you don't, someone else will. Also, never judge a book by its cover and always treat everybody the same."

The vision for Christy's future in property?

"The challenges are trying to keep up with the times; and technology especially. There is a lot of competition out there and you have to try to find out what makes you stand out from other agents."

She adds: "My concern is interest rates going higher and higher. This may mean more properties to sell, but it won't be a positive to see my clients, who have become family, having to sell their homes if times get tougher."

On a lighter note, what has been one of Christy's funniest moments in the property business?

She smiles and replies: "Probably the time I showed a client a property and ended up tripping and falling into the pool - in heels, too!"

Married for six years - her husband, Anton, is an import-export manager in the optometry business - Christy is the mother of a daughter called Peyton, who is almost three.

Little Peyton is the apple of her granny Lindi's eye. "She is the light of my life," says a proud Lindi, who, when she's not working or spending time with her precious grand-daughter, enjoys casinos, playing tennis and bridge, watching movies, eating out and being a devoted member of the Church.

Lindi has been with The A-Team for two years. Prior to that she was with DPG Elite in Westville and her late father's MaxProp Westville franchise: "I was made manager by my father, probably because I had been the longest in property of all us girls," she recalls, adding that she has chalked up more than three decades in the property world.

Lindi is proud of the fact that she simultaneously qualified for her NQF4 and NQF5: "It was the best thing I could have done, because I got rid of two daunting tasks at the same time".

She was an agent with Maxprop Westville from 1987: "I did very well and was always in the Top 10 of the group. As a branch we were always in the Top 3 of the group".

She points out that, years back, she had studied to be an auditor ("I realised that was far too boring for me") and also spent some years repping with Barclays Industrial Bank, "which I thoroughly enjoyed".

Her views on the A-team branch's strengths?

"I have more than 30 years of experience in residential sales - and as a team we are all very hard-working and don't give up. We all have diverse interests which helps with knowing a wide range of people who potentially refer to us, as and when they know of someone buying or selling. In our first year with Dormehl Phalane we came fifth as a branch, with three of our agents featuring in the top 10 of the group. The second year is very similar."

Asked her views on Owen Dormehl as a boss, Lindi replies: "He is always available. Any day, any time, you can call him with a problem and he always has a solution. He is always trying to find new ways to make our lives as agents better and for us to achieve more".

Looking forward, Lindi says business has been good and she is optimistic this will continue, helped by banks lending clients up to a 100% bond. Looking back again, she grins when she says she was not initially drawn to a career in property.

"In my twenties, after travelling overseas, I came home and decided I needed to do something. My father said, 'Come and sell houses', but, to be honest, I couldn't think of anything worse to do than that".

With no real plans, Lindi opted to listen to dad and give property a go: "It was the best thing I could have done. You can work as hard or as little as you please. Your time is flexible and you can basically decide what you want to earn. The more you put in the more you get out."

Priorities and longer-term plans?

Says Lindi: "I am planning a trip to Australia in a few months, to take my mom to meet two of her great- grandchildren, whom she has not met. Work-wise, the aim is to increase the number of agents working here."

She is upbeat about the future of the South African property market: "Single-digit interest rates are amazing. I started in property in 1987, when interest rates were 27%. I would encourage people who are renting to buy, because before they know it, they will have been renting for 10 years and could have paid off half of a bond."

Lindi describes her strengths as "determined, empathetic, hard-working , generous, reliable and knowledgeable," although she admits to being "impatient, too generous and too forgiving at times".

Her tips for a good agent?

"Always be truthful. Never decide for a client. Don't discount a house because you don't like it... people buy based on emotions! Also, if you don't know the answer to a question, instead of guessing, say you don't know but will find out."